7 S APPENDIX 



qualities" are placed one upon the other, in the fame man- 

 ner as our plates, and the principal people, fitting firft down, 

 eat the white Teff; the fecond, or coarfer fort, ferves the fe- 

 cond-rate people that fucceed them, and the third is for 

 the fervants. Every man, when he is done, dries or wipes 

 his fingers upon the bread which he is to leave for his 

 fucceffor, for they have no towels, and ihis is one of the 

 moil beaftly cuftoms of the whole. 



The Teff bread, when well toafted, is put into a large 

 jar, after being broken into fmall pieces, and warm water 

 poured upon iti i It is then fet by the fire, and frequently 

 ilirred for feveral days, the mouth of the jar being clofe co- 

 vered. After being allowed to fettle three or four days, it 

 acquires a fourifh tafte, and is what they call JBouza, or 

 the common beer of the country. The bouza in Atbara 

 is made in the fame manner, only, inflead of TefF, cakes of 

 barley-meal are employed ; both are very bad liquors, but 

 the worft is that made of bailey. 



The plant is herbaceous-; from a number df weak leaves 

 proceeds a ftalk of about twenty-eight inches in length, 

 not perfectly ftraight, fmooth, but jointed or knotted at par- 

 ticular diftances. This ftalk is not much thicker than that 

 of a carnation or jellyflower. About eight inches from the 

 top, a head is formed of a number of fmall branches, upon 

 which it carries the fruit and flowers ; the latter of which 

 is fmall, of a crimfon colour, and fcarcely perceptible by 

 the naked eye, but from the oppofition of that colour. The 

 piltil is divided into two, feemingly attached to the germ 

 of the fruit, and has at each end fmall capillaments form- 

 ing a brufh. The ffamina are three in number, two on .the 



2 lower 



